MANSFIELD, Texas — Griffon Softball (3–0) stormed back late against MSU Denver (1–3), scoring six runs in the top of the seventh inning, including a grand slam, as part of an offensive showcase that produced 16 total hits in a 12–7 win on Day Two of the Lone Star D2 College Classic at the Fields at Station 63.
MSU Denver struck first in the opening inning, using an RBI infield single followed by a three-run double to jump out to a 4-0 lead.
MWSU responded in the second inning when Rachel Cain launched a solo home run to deep left field. MoWest continued to chip away in the third as Sydney Young crushed a two-run homer to deep left, pulling the Griffons within one at 4-3.
MSU Denver answered with a two-run home run in the third and added another run in the fourth to extend the lead to 7-3.
MoWest's offense stayed aggressive in the fifth inning as a run scored on a wild pitch before Ashlyn Finarty drove in another on a groundout to cut the deficit to 7-5. The Griffons added another in the sixth when Myah Dwyer singled to shortstop, scoring Kalee Higdon and trimming the lead to one.
The decisive seventh inning saw MoWest break through in a big way. Rachel Cain lined an RBI single down the right field line to even the score at 7-7. Amiya Hernandez followed with a grand slam to left field to put the Griffons in front, and Sydney Young capped the rally with an RBI single as the Griffons closed the game with a 12-7 advantage.
In the circle, MWSU used four pitchers on the day. Aubrey Dare worked the opening two-thirds of an inning before Harley Pruetting tossed 2.1 innings with four strikeouts. Kendra Mitchell provided a steady outing in relief, allowing just one hit over 2.1 scoreless innings. Torie Sandoval earned the win to move to 1–0 on the season, striking out three while allowing one hit across 1.2 scoreless innings to close out the comeback victory.
Griffon Softball closes out the Lone Star D2 Classic on Sunday in Mansfield with a pair of matchups against Texas A&M–Kingsville at 9 a.m., followed by St. Edward's at 11:15 a.m., wrapping up the opening weekend.
